With the extension of social protection in developing countries, it has become more common to include other types of benefits in national definitions of social protection systems. For example, social protection initiatives may provide agricultural input subsidies, youth employment programmes, school feeding programmes or subsidized transport. Social protection may not be the primary objective of such programmes as they provide other benefits, such as enhancing agricultural production and food security, promoting education, enhancing skills and promoting employment. The multiplicity of objectives has implications for policy design and implementation and the realization of the right to social security.

Following an outcome-oriented approach, Recommendation No. 202 is open to including different types of benefits and schemes in nationally-defined social protection floors, based on clear principles and guidance.

Principles

Social protection plays a key role in realizing the rights of persons with disabilities of all ages: providing them with an adequate standard of living, a basic level of income security; thus reducing levels of poverty and vulnerability. Moreover, mainstream and/or specific social protection schemes concerning persons with disabilities can have a major role in […]

Legal Instruments

A reference for the development of social security systems, Convention No. 102 is the flagship of the up-to-date social security Conventions since it is deemed to embody the internationally accepted definition of the very principle of social security. Convention No. 102 is unique for both its conceptual formulation of social security, and the guidance it provides for […]

Recommendation No. 202 is the first international instrument to offer guidance to countries to close social security gaps and progressively achieve universal protection through the establishment and maintenance of comprehensive social security systems. To this aim, the Recommendation calls for (1) the implementation, as a priority, of social protection floors (SPF) as a fundamental element […]

Resources

This report presents a review of the recent changes made to the Ukrainian social security system between 2014 and 2015 and of the planned future reforms in the light of international social security standards. The ILO assessment aims to assist the Ukrainian Government and the social partners in effectively formulating and implementing measures to sustain […]

Social protection policies play a critical role in realizing the human right to social security for all, reducing poverty and inequality, and promoting inclusive growth – by boosting human capital and productivity, and by supporting domestic demand and structural transformation of national economies. This ILO flagship report provides a global overview of the organization of […]